The Future Was Yesterday

Submitter: Any book that attempts to predict the future as seen from my high school years is at best laughable, at worst a bit suspect. If this one still circulated – if nothing but so the kids could laugh at people’s guesses on future technology – I’d keep it, but it hasn’t left the library in twelve years. It’s time for this one to go.

Holly: This was published in 1998? Some of the things pictured (below) seem like they existed in 1998. The flip-style cell phone, for example. I think I had one of those in 1998, or very shortly after. Also, some of the examples in the book are written in present tense, like the disc and mini cassette in the first picture below. If you’re talking about the present, it’s not the future! Regardless, much of what’s in this book are now in the past.

Someone on this site once said anyone who still owns a Walkman is a huge loser, or something to that effect. I still have a Walkman that plays tapes that I bought on clearance back in the early 2000’s, and I still listen to it, and if you gave me an mp3 I wouldn’t have a clue how to make it work. Thanks a lot for making feel like a huge loser, as if I didn’t know that already. I also still own a VCR. Ouch.

At least we now have the database Films on Demand, which helps, but even after weeding half the video collection last year, over 90-95% of the physical video collection is VHS. We just don’t have the funds to replace it all, and things are going to streaming videos anyway.

We looked at possibly converting them all over to DVD, but was probably more headaches than was worth it, from a legal standpoint. We already have the capability to convert VHS to DVD’s.

I actually own this book and yeah, it is woefully out of date at this point. But, of course, when it’s 1998 and you’re 10 years old and love the Eyewitness books like nobody’s business, you’re going to think it’s the coolest thing ever.

I still kind of want the fuzzy/flocked robopets they have in the eighth picture down. Way cuter than Furbies and Pleos.